Slanting vs yeast starter question

[zephaniahsw]

How long will yeast starter last in the fridge? I've been interested in slanting and what i've gathered is essentially one makes a starter, innoculates a slant and then uses a slant to make a starter (or a starter for a starter) when needed. What is the significance of the slant instead of just skipping the step and storing a starter?

 

[jimyson]

There are various reasons but the main in my opinion is that the slant will keep longer. Pick up the book from JZ "Yeast" and read it...valuable information in that book. One of the main things that you will learn is that when creating slants, you should be grabbing yeast from a single cell. You won't get this from a starter or a slant, rather you would create a plate to isolate a single cell.

 

[WoodlandBrew]

Yeast in a suspension will last for several months in the refrigerator with very little drop in viability. Some people have used slurry that is over a year old. Here is some data on viability of refrigerated yeast:
http://www.woodlandbrew.com/2012/12/refrigeration-effects-on-yeast-viability.html

You might also consider glycerin freezing for long term storage of smaller samples.